Looking For Salvation
by coexist love
Summary: A day at Winslow takes an interesting turn but this time Ronnie Cooke is the one that is effected. CHAPTER 5 UP NOW! Please Read and Review!
1. Prologue

Author's Note: Gun violence is a serious crime. I don't enjoy writing about it I just think that someone has too especially since it happens in big cities.  
  
Disclaimer: All hail the makers of Boston Public.  
  
Prologue  
  
Ronnie was barely aware of the bright light overhead as she felt herself move at a horizontal angle through the white halls of the hospital. Her vision was blurred but her nerves where on high and she could here Mr. Harper's voice in her trying to reassure her that everything would be okay. Ronnie suddenly felt a wet feeling on the back of her hand and she realized that the wound on her stomach was bleeding heavily and she wasn't a doctor but she guessed there was some internal damage as well. She suddenly heard the slamming of the doors open and darkness overcame her sending her mind into a serene mode where she could think about what had happened that morning.  
  
Note: I know it's short but it's a prologue. If you want more then please review. It would be very appreciated when I create the rest of the story. I'm looking for a minimum of five reviews per chapter. Thanks. 


	2. The Waiting Room

Author's Note: Okay I am a relatively new fan to Boston Public so I don't know how strict you guys are with details but some things might be a little off. If you have a problem with any of this please put it in your review and I will try to correct it. Is that okay with everyone. I've had stuff to do on Monday nights so the Friday night move is great for me and I also want to apologize for not updating sooner. I've been trying to get every last bit of knowledge I could possible about Boston Public off the internet but the only character I know well is Ronnie so please don't penalize me for inaccurate details just e-mail me or put it in your review. Okay enough boring talk on with the chapter.  
  
Looking For Salvation: Chapter 2  
  
They were waiting in the waiting room outside emergency surgery. They had no way of contacting Ronnie's family. Not even Danny Hansen knew how to reach them. He felt bad for the things that he had said in their conversation yesterday afternoon, Ronnie had approached him to talk about some research she had done between the yearbooks and the grades. He had told her that she was one of the people that had gotten by on just her looks in high school when he knew she was smart and intelligent. Now he really regretted it.  
  
His thoughts were interrupted as the doors burst open and Carmen Torres entered the room. She had stayed at the school to take care of some police work knowing that both Steven and Scott thought it was their fault that Ronnie was hurt and even though she was the new teacher and cared about Ronnie as well she knew that the police needed help so that they could catch the boys responsible.  
  
"How is she?" Carmen asked.  
  
"We don't know," Steven said. "They haven't told us. She's been in surgery for two hours."  
  
"I wonder what's taking so long?" Carmen said.  
  
"She was shot in the abdomen," Danny pointed out raking a hand threw his dirty blonde hair. "There was probably some damage to her internal organs."  
  
"What were those boys thinking?" Carmen said.  
  
"Ronnie always has to stick her nose in where it doesn't belong," Marilyn said disrupting the silence; it was the first time she had spoken since the doctors took Ronnie into surgery. "She was trying to help one of the boys that had come to her with a problem at home and that probably stirred things up and made him come to school with the gun." Marilyn drew a deep breath and then let it out before she continued. "I'm just glad no one else was hurt."  
  
"Here's to that," Harvey Lipshultz said. "Especially none of the students  
  
"I'm sorry to disrupt everyone's train of thought but what are we going to do now?" Carmen said. "I mean what if that boy's friends think what he did was 'cool'," Carmen said putting finger quotes around 'cool'. "And they all come in with guns and decide to kill all the teachers?"  
  
"Carmen makes a good point," Marilyn said. "I don't want to be in Ronnie's condition right now and I don't want to be here again because one of you was shot by a student."  
  
"We should have an assembly," Steven said. "As soon as we get a report on Ronnie's condition we can tell them how she is doing and explain what happened to the students."  
  
"I can make a cable announcement over public access," Scott offered.  
  
"Every little bit helps," Steven said.  
  
"Maybe we should get metal detectors in front of the school," Harry suggested. "It would make it safer so that we could make sure that no students is smuggling a gun in."  
  
"Let's not jump on that just yet but I do admit we need some better procedures," Steven said.  
  
"The boy's right," Harvey pointed out. "I think we definitely need to take precautionary measures such as his suggestion."  
  
"Lets not worry about that now," Marilyn insisted. "Lets focus on Ronnie. Her condition is exactly what matter here and that is the only that matters here. We need to be strong for her."  
  
"She's a great teacher," Scott said. "I'd hate to lose her."  
  
"She's been a good friend too," Danny said. "I just wish that I hadn't said all the things I had said in our last conversation."  
  
"What was that?" Carmen asked as she took a seat knowing that she was going to have to sit down.  
  
"A girl came to her because I gave her a D on a paper. She accused me of sexual assault but I denied it. Ronnie came to me later saying that she had confessed that she'd lied. But Ronnie did some research, grade records with yearbook pictures and found out that good looking people didn't do so well in my classes. I told her that they had always gotten by on their looks and that she should know," Danny said. "Then she looked at me and said: 'Because I'm one of those people.' She just said it in such a way that she knew it was true. I feel really bad about saying it."  
  
"She'll be fine," Carmen said. "Or I hope she'll be."  
  
As if on cur the operating room doors slammed open and in walked the emergency room doctor. The group of teachers stood.  
  
"Are you the group that was with Ronnie Cook?" she asked.  
  
"Yes," Marilyn replied.  
  
"How is she?" Danny asked.  
  
"Let's talk in my office," she said.  
  
END OF CHAPTER 2  
  
Author's Note: Please review! I love reviews. Please! I need at least five reviews for this chapter in order to continue. Thanks a bundle and if you read my others note at the top feel free to tell me any suggestion that you have for this story. 


	3. Ronnie's Condition

Author's Note: I have a confession to make. I wrote this the day I published Chapter 2 but I was waiting for the reviews that said there was interest in the turn the story was taking. So thanks for the reviews.  
  
Looking For Salvation: 3  
  
The group of teachers entered the doctor's office, each of them thinking that Ronnie was either dying or dead. They all took a seat among the many chairs in the office and watched as the female doctor sit on the edge of the desk as she began to speak.  
  
"As you know Ms. Cook suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. We've removed the bullet but it was touch and go for quite a while. I'm sorry to have to tell you her condition is critical, the bullet wound had already been infected, and she's lapsed into a coma," the doctor said. She looked around the room and saw that Marilyn and Carmen had closed their eyes in a desperate attempt to hold back tears. "I'm sorry about this but it gets worse. The bullet hit part of her spinal column, if she does regain consciousness she may never walk again."  
  
"Wait," Scott said. "Did you say if?"  
  
"Yes I did?" The doctor said. "There is a chance that this infection will win Ronnie over and she will die." She noticed a salty tear drip down Carmen's face. "I'm not going to give you all the details but the next twenty-four hours are critical. She won't be out of the woods but if she survives the next twenty-four hours she will have a good fighting chance. The following twenty-four hours after will tell us everything. We have her under close observation and if there is any problem we are confident that we can correct it. On top of her coma Ronnie lost a severe amount of blood and she looks very pale right now because the blood loss caused anemia, we are giving her blood transfusions to help replace the blood she lost."  
  
"Can we see her?" Steven asked.  
  
"Only for a short time," the doctor explained. "Hospital policy."  
  
"Thank you," Marilyn said. "Where is she?"  
  
"ICU Room 5" the doctor reported to them.  
  
"Thank you," Harvey said as the group of teachers stood up to leave. *** Sounds of monitors welcomed the ears of The Winslow High teachers. The looked at the door numbers until they found room number five. They peered through the glass to see Ronnie lying on the bed surrounded by machines, which beeped softly letting then know that life was still inside her frail body. IV Trees hung above her head feeding blood into her veins. Her face was pale and she looked dead.  
  
"Should we go in?" Carmen asked solemnly.  
  
"Yeah," Steven said. "Lets go in."  
  
Hesitantly the teachers entered Ronnie's room. Now that they saw the extent of her injuries their nightmare had come true. Marilyn moved her hand up to Ronnie's cheek. It was cold and she pulled back as if she had just touched a burner on a hot stove. Everyone was quiet and the stillness of the air seemed deafening. The only sounds in the room were the monotonous beep of the monitors and the hissing of Ronnie's ventilator. Danny broke the silence.  
  
"I wonder what is going on in her head right now," Danny asked not bothering to take his eyes off Ronnie.  
  
"Who knows," Steven said. "What we should discuss now is how to tell the students."  
  
"We should call an assembly," Carmen said as she wiped a tear from her eye. "My sixth grade science teacher died from a stroke and they announced it over the loudspeaker. I felt so betrayed and out of it. It hadn't been the right thing to do. I think we should tell them in person."  
  
"I have to agree with Carmen," Danny said. "She has personal experience so I think that we should do her way."  
  
"Okay that is settled," Steven said. "Now how do we inform the parents?"  
  
"We can hand out notices," Harvey suggested.  
  
"No," Marilyn protested. "Notices usually end up in the trash." Marilyn drew her sweater tightly around her as she said her next opinion. "I think that Scott should give a cable address. They saw his presentation on THE MORNING AFTER PILL and that reached them so why not now?"  
  
"I can do that," Scott said. "It may be the most effective way for us to inform the parents."  
  
"Great," Steven said. "I need you all at your best tomorrow. If we are going to inform the students we'll have to do it professionally. I'll prepare a speech to address them; all of you should just get some sleep. I don't want worry to get in place of our jobs. I'll leave them my home phone number just in case there are any changes in Ronnie's condition. If there is a change I will Scott, who will call Carmen, who will call Danny, who will call Harvey, who will call Marilyn, who will call me and let me know that the phone chain has gone through all of us. Okay?" Everyone stared at them, their eyes piercing his skin.  
  
"Wait give us that again," Harvey asked him. "Okay," Steven said this time slower. "If there is a change in Ronnie's condition, I will Scott, who will call Carmen, who will call Danny, who will call Harvey, who will call Marilyn, who will call me and let me know that the phone chain has gone through all of us. Any questions?"  
  
'What about Marla?" Marilyn asked. "She's still on suspension remember."  
  
"Right, Marla," Steven said. "Okay here's the revised phone chain. I will call Scott, who will call Marla, who will call Carmen, who will call Danny, who will call Harvey, who will call Marilyn, who will call me. Okay?"  
  
"Okay," the said in unison.  
  
"I'll call Marla when I get home so that she doesn't find out that Ronnie is getting better or worse when she doesn't even know what is going on," Steven said.  
  
"Okay," they said.  
  
"Should we go home?" Danny asked.  
  
"Yes just give me a minute at the nurses' station." Steven responded running into the hall so that he could give the nurse his phone number.  
  
The remainder of the group waited in Ronnie's room while Steven gave the nurse his phone number. When he returned the group each squeezed Ronnie's hand once more and the felt the icy coldness that Marilyn had felt when she touched her cheek, as they each prayed that Ronnie would make it through the night, then they dismissed themselves from the room and returned home preparing for the long day ahead of them *** It was late at night in the graveyard shift at the hospital. The ICU nurses where hard at work monitoring their patients. The patients had been doing fine and most of them were out of the woods except for one. The blond woman that had just came in with the gunshot wound to the abdomen. She was lucky to be alive, a few more minutes and they wouldn't have been able to stop the bleeding. One nurse passed the room and looked at the woman, just as everything seemed peaceful until blonde haired woman went into convulsions.  
  
"Doctor," she yelled down the hall.  
  
The doctor ran into the room and immediately started to restrain the woman. "Call Steven Harper. His number is on my desk I can handle it here"  
  
The nurse ran off in panic to find Steven Harper's number in the directory that the nurses kept. *** Steven Harper was sleeping peacefully with thoughts of Marilyn in his head, only to be shaken awake by the ringing phone. Exhausted he picked it up put the cold receiver to his ear.  
  
"Hello," he said with an exhausted tone. He waited as he heard someone babble on the other line. "What?!"  
  
Author's Note" Reviews please!! I need to see some interest in order to keep this story going. 


	4. The Assembly

Author's Note: I'm sorry it took so long to update I had a slight writer's block but I am back with a new chapter that will knock your socks off (I hope). Please reviews so that I will keep updating. I need another five reviews in order to keep going. Enough talk. Read on.  
  
Looking For Salvation  
  
Chapter 3  
  
The morning passed and Carmen was walking threw the halls of Winslow High ready for another day of classes. She had received a call from Marla who told her about Ronnie suffering a seizure but the doctor's said it was induced by the ventilator and that she was fine once they took it out. She passed on the message to Danny who she was going to meet at the assembly later so that they could discuss what was going on with Ronnie. She knew that this was going to be a tough time for him. He was a good friend with Ronnie so when he saw her on the floor of her classroom with a bullet wound in her stomach she could only imagine how he had felt. Entering the auditorium she found Danny sitting on a table in the back annex, the sounds of students who where glad to be out of their first period class in front of him.  
  
"Danny hey," Carmen said.  
  
"Hey," Danny said as he looked back at the crowd.  
  
"I adore their arrogance," Carmen said. "A good 19/1000ths of the kids know the hell that we went threw last night because they witnessed it and probably scarier for them to see that happen in one quick shot then for us to have to sit in the waiting room hoping that Ronnie would come out of this okay."  
  
"Yeah," Danny said his tone not showing any emotion. "They got an instant mortality check." He paused staring at the group of students sitting at the front of the steps; they were the group of students that saw Ronnie get shot. "I'm just glad none of the other students were hurt."  
  
"Me to," Carmen said lowering her head as Steven took the podium.  
  
Immediately the room was silent and everyone's eyes turned to Mr. Harper. Steven gathered up his note card and took a sharp breath in as he began reciting his speech. "As some of you may know yesterday during eighth period a student came into school with a gun. He took the gun up to Ronnie Cook's classroom where he shot her point blank in the abdomen. Ronnie was taken Boston General Hospital where we the teachers waiting for two hours for news on Ronnie's condition. The shot had no positive affects to Ronnie's condition. She lost a supreme amount of blood and it was a miracle that she was still conscious when we got to the hospital. When the doctor came out she told us that Ronnie was in a coma and there was a chance of paralysis, hopefully it is just temporary. Then as she went on to explain the severity of Ronnie's condition she told us that Ronnie might not even wake up because of the infection caused by the bullet. The teachers saw her last night and when we left we realized that the only thing we can do was to keep hope in our hearts that she awakens from this coma. Even though there is a chance of paralysis." He looked at the students and saw that most of the girls had tears streaming down their face. "We want to encourage you to talk to the guidance counselor and to come to any of your teachers, we are here to help you and we are here to support you. Classes are on hold today so that we can grieve for Ms. Cooke. I hope that all of you will take some time and examine the ways that Ronnie has helped you in your time at Winslow High. Thank you."  
  
Steven left the podium at which point Marie, a student Ronnie had helped earlier this year, ran towards him. Her eyes where watery but that didn't stop her, there was something that she had to do.  
  
"Mr. Harper," Marie yelled after him.  
  
He turned around to see the girl chasing him. "Yes?" He questioned her.  
  
"Mr. Harper," Marie began. "I was wondering if Miss Cook was up to taking any visitors?  
  
"Marie, Miss Cook isn't even conscious at this point," Steven tried to tell her.  
  
"I know," Marie said. "I can't explain it but I have to see her. She tried to help me before and I protested her and in the end she respected my wishes. I just need to see her, I never really thanked her for what she did."  
  
"She is in room 5 ICU," Steven said. "If you want to go over now we won't penalize you. It's a hard day for everyone and as I said before we aren't having classes."  
  
"Thank you," Marie said as she turned to leave. "I appreciate the offer." *** Marie ran into the hospital twenty minutes later. She found the ICU wing and sprinted down the hall. She began counting the numbers.1.3..5! She found it but suddenly had a bad intuition about going into the room itself. So she quietly moved towards the glass window. And glanced in gasping at the sight of her favorite teacher lying on the bed with her blonde hair sprawled out around her shoulders. She saw a doctor in the room checking Ronnie's pulse and she suddenly realized that she didn't have the strength to go in but she gathered her wits and forced herself to walk threw the doorway and into the bleach white room.  
  
Now that she was inside the room she could see how bad Ronnie's condition was. Her face was pale, a tell tale sign that she had lost a lot of blood and she could see that the hospital had put a wheelchair near the side of Ronnie's bed. Marie could tell sense that the doctors didn't think that Ronnie would be able to walk again when she woke up and she could only imagine how Ronnie was going to feel when she woke up. Then again Mr. Harper did say that they thought it was temporary. That could be a good sign but Marie was smart enough to know that even if her paralysis were temporary Ronnie would still have to go through intense physical therapy. She knew that Ronnie would be frustrated while she went through the therapy, her sister had been shot once during a bar fight. Marie crept closer to Ronnie's bed and suddenly the soft beeping of the monitors became noticeable as she took a set next to the chair that was placed by her bedside.  
  
"Hey," she said as she began speaking to Ronnie as if she was conscious. "Mr. Harper told us what happened today in school. I'm only sorry that it happened to you." Marie paused drawing a sharp breath in. "I realized I never really thanked you for respecting my wishes and not going threw with the case. That is why I came here and when Mr. Harper told us that there was a chance of paralysis I thought that I could help you. My older sister Kylie was injured in a bar fight and there was a extensive amount of therapy involved but I think I could help you get threw it, or at least get Kylie to help you get threw it. Miss Cook you need to come back to us. The school is a wreck without you there and frankly I don't know how the students are going to get through the year especially me. You should also know that Miss Torres and Mr. Hansen are bother nervous wrecks as well as every other teacher." Marie dropped her head again and put her hand on Ronnie's offering support. "Please come back to us Miss Cook." With that being said Marie got up to leave but then felt a small movement under her hand, the hand that was covering Ronnie's cold one. She realized what was happening, Ronnie was waking up. "Oh my God!!!" Marie yelled as she ran to the doorway. "Nurse!!!! Nurse!!!!"  
  
A soft moan escaped Ronnie's lips as the nurse entered the room.  
  
"Let me go get the doctor," the nurse said running back down the hall.  
  
"Miss Cook!! Miss Cook!!!" Marie yelled trying to bring her teacher back threw the familiarity of a human voice.  
  
Ronnie could feel the IV tubes in her right hand now and she could feel the oxygen being blown into her lungs by the clear tube that rested behind her ears. She finally gathered the strength to open up her eyes. 


	5. She's Waking Up!

Author's Note: Don't worry I haven't forgotten about this fanfic! I have been busy the past few weeks and I am just now getting to sit down and do this chapter productively. I hope you enjoy it and remember to read and review because otherwise I will not continue this fanfic.  
  
Looking for Salvation  
  
Chapter 4  
  
"Miss Cook! Miss Cook!" Marie shouted hoping that her could here her. Ronnie's eyes where open but they she was staring off into space as if nobody existed.  
  
Finally Ronnie's eyes focused and she could see the figure of a young dirty blonde haired girl standing on front of her. "Marie?" Ronnie questioned her voice rusty from lack of use.  
  
"It's okay Miss Cook you're in the hospital," Marie explained.  
  
"Hospital?" Ronnie questioned.  
  
"Do you remember what happened?" Marie asked.  
  
Ronnie thought for a moment until she finally remembered, the classroom, the shooting, all of it, then she realized that she couldn't feel her legs. "Oh god!" she gasped just as the doctor came into the room.  
  
"Miss Cook," the doctor said. "I have a few things I want to check out ok?" To shocked to say anything Ronnie only nodded as the doctor discreetly moved her hand to Ronnie's thigh and pinched it. "Can you feel that?"  
  
"Feel what?" Ronnie asked.  
  
"Miss Cook I just pinched your skin hard enough to bruise," the doctor said. "There is no easy way to say this but the bullet scraped your spinal column. We don't know whether or not this is permanent but we are going to put you threw a physical therapy program."  
  
"What is the probability I will be able to walk again?" Ronnie asked.  
  
"Probably about 50/50 right now," the doctor explained. "We started you on a pain killer and we have notified your friends and they are on their way."  
  
"Okay" Ronnie said. The doctor left the room and then Ronnie turned her head towards Marie. "How's everything doing?"  
  
"Fine," Marie said. "My grades are good and my friends are fine. Miss Cook the real reason I came here is to thank you. You didn't have to follow me wishes you could have ignored me and just went to the police but you didn't."  
  
"You don't have to thank me," Ronnie said. "I was just doing my job."  
  
"No," Marie said. "Not every teacher cares about their students the way you do. You care and as a result of that you may not even walk again. This shouldn't have happened to you Miss Cook."  
  
Before Ronnie could say anything in return there was a knock on the door and a slow creek as it opened, in popped Carmen Torres.  
  
"Hey Ronnie you're awake," Carmen yelped.  
  
"Please don't talk so loud I have a headache," Ronnie told Carmen.  
  
"No problem did the doctors tell you anything?" Carmen asked.  
  
"Yeah," Ronnie said. "She said that there is a 50/50 chance that I could walk again."  
  
"Oh god Ronnie I am so sorry," Carmen said.  
  
"Don't worry about it," Ronnie said pulling her blonde hair onto her right shoulder. "Now tell me what is going on at the school."  
  
"We had an assembly today," Carmen said. "All the students are hysterical and right when I left Guber was setting up for a broadcast over public access to speak to the parents about gun violence and how it's how effecting the student body."  
  
"Who would think I could cause so much trouble?" Ronnie asked rhetorically.  
  
"Don't think that way," Marie said. "You were just trying to help."  
  
"What was Steven thinking?" Ronnie asked. "I am a bad bad bad bad bad bad bad counselor."  
  
"You're not that bad," Carmen said.  
  
"I should head back before my lunch period is over," Marie said.  
  
"Okay I'll see you in physics tomorrow," Carmen said.  
  
"Thanks for coming Marie," Ronnie said as Marie gathered her books and headed towards the door.  
  
"You're welcome Miss Cook," Marie said. "Get well soon."  
  
"I'll do my best," Ronnie said as Marie left. "What happened to the kid who shot me?" she asked as she turned to Carmen.  
  
"Right after the barged into the school and called an ambulance they arrested him and held him in prison. They're going to put him on trial and they got five of the nineteen kids in your classroom to testify but they need you to testify as well so they aren't scheduling the trial until you are up and about," Carmen reported.  
  
"I never had a reason to fear my students before but now I'm not sure who to trust," Ronnie said.  
  
"Hey the majority of the kids that are at Winslow are good kids, kids with high GPAs, but some of them are notorious," Carmen said. "We had no way of knowing that Chad Baker was going to run into your classroom with a gun after you tried to help him."  
  
"That's what scares me Carmen," Ronnie said. "We had no way of knowing but there had to have been signs that we somehow ignored."  
  
"Why don't you get some more sleep," Carmen said. "You're going to need it when you start physical therapy tomorrow." 


End file.
